'Cthulhu Slippers' is a must read webcomic for Lovecraft fans

The workplace is madness! Cthulhu and comedy generally don't work well together, but the writer artist team of Andrew Jack and Natalie Metzger have married the two in the sadistic yet strangely adorable brainchild, “Cthulhu Slippers.” The web-comic injects the Cthulhu Mythos into the office drone's everyday life.

In an email interview, writer Andrew Jack explained, that monsters were not always part of the plan. The initial idea that he and co-creator Cameron Gibbs was simply to “[make] fun of the stupid things we went through in our day jobs.” Jack continued, “I'm not entirely sure why, but one day one of us added eldritch abominations to the scripts we already had and it suddenly worked.” The resultant comic playfully compares the damage wreaked upon the modern world by corporate entities with the civilization-toppling indifference of the creatures waging war on each other within the stories of H.P. Lovecraft.

The comic depicts Cthulhu as a human-sized, pot-bellied corporate overlord with a weakness for girl scout cookies, chips, beer, and his stuffed octopus named Squishy. “Poor Cthulhu, he got the shortest straw,” said Jack. “Something went wrong bringing [him] over from the universe he normally inhabits.” However, Jack warned that the old monster still lurks beneath his seemingly benevolent exterior.

Artist Natalie Metzger said, “I've always had an enthusiasm for cephalopods, Lovecraftian creatures, and dark humor so when Andrew approached me to do the art for Cthulhu Slippers, I was completely on board for this idea to come to life.” She listed Edward Gorey, Scott Kurtz, Shaun Tan and Bobby Chiu as influences on her work. For more monsters by Metzger check out her Month of Monsters project. She also disclosed that she drew Cthulhu in a tweed suit with a bow tie as homage to the 11th Doctor. Even Cthulhu thinks bow ties are cool.

“The response so far to 'Cthulhu Slippers' has been much more than I'd hoped for,” said Jack, “a big part due to the support of Mike Davis of the Lovecraft ezine who helps get the word out about new strips.” said Jack. However, the comic is a labor of love as it still costs more to operate than it brings in.

Jack also writes short stories and has future plans to publish novels. He maintains the website Andrew Jack Writing, and enjoys the support of his “long-suffering and very employed wife.” In addition to a day job as network administrator, Metzger draws the comic “Over-encumbered”and maintains her art blog The Fuzzy Slug. She has worked on 5 comics to date including Cthulhu Slippers.

Watch for new “Cthulu Slippers” comics each Monday. Apparently, black mass in on Tuesday afternoons and participants are asked to “bring sacrificial pie.”

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Claire Thalken is a writer and multi-media artist who has a passion for self-directed study and enjoys spreading mirth as long as her patience holds out. She has been sarcastic since birth. An online portfolio of her artwork may be viewed here: creatrixsblood.wordpress.com. Contact email: creatrixsblood@gmail.com.